Despite having one of the busier schedules, day eight proved to be quite the experience. In the span of just seven hours, we managed to squeeze in two site visits, lunch, and a trip to the mall. Talk about packed!
Our first site visit of the morning was at VSIP, a joint-venture business otherwise known as Vietnamese Singapore Industrial Park. Interestingly enough, the land owned by VSIP constitutes as its own “providence” where it provides housing, amenities, and services to those who choose to live there. I found myself intrigued by this company; compared to Phu My Hung, VSIP appeared to be considerably more developed. Operating in the north, central, and south of Vietnam allowed for a wide variety of projects to be completed, all of which contained numerous enterprises within.
After a few minutes of thought, I figured that VSIP’s primary goal for cultivating such mass amounts of land must stem from the desire to significantly increase development, especially extending to the farmer / rural demographic. People, particularly those who are unfamiliar with the fast-paced city life, may feel more comfortable in one of VSIP’s developments. After our host’s presentation, I have a better understanding as to why an individual may feel an attraction toward this style of living. On top of strict environmental protection policies, the Vietnamese Singapore Industrial Park takes a great amount of effort into caring for its people and workers. The offering of investment services, legal assistance, and operation support (just to name a few) all further the idea that a well-functioning community is very important to the Vietnamese people.
After VSIP, the group stopped for lunch at one of the shopping malls located within the industrial park. The fresh udon noodles and shrimp tempura were integral in order to maintain our energy levels for the rest of the afternoon. 
Our second stop at II-VI proved to be interesting, perhaps just a tad confusing for the business students. Headquartered in Pennsylvania, this company manufactures a plethora of different products: glass lenses, thermoelectric equipment, computer coolers, just to name a few. Larger companies, such as Microsoft, will come to II-VI with specific design requests for computer-related items. During our tour, I was shocked to learn that many of their workers are specialized in just one skill. I couldn’t help but wonder about some of the problems that may arise from this choice: How often do they get bored? Does II-VI consider that workers may perform better if they are specialized in many skills? It’s surely a unique business choice that has its positives and negatives.
Although I remained just a little bit confused, it was intriguing to learn the manufacturing process in great detail. As a visual learner myself, it made it immensely easier to understand the concepts our host was describing. I’ll stick to business, but I have certainly developed a greater appreciation for the tedious work that factory men & women complete on a daily basis.